RESOLVING ETHICAL BUSINESS CHALLENGES After graduating from Ohio State, Keisha g
ID: 328597 • Letter: R
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RESOLVING ETHICAL BUSINESS CHALLENGES After graduating from Ohio State, Keisha got a job in the marketing and public relations department at a small soda company called Smith's Sodas. Smith's Sodas spe- cializes in high-quality fruit-flavored soft drinks with After two days of phone calls, she finally contacted someone who had been involved in the actual develop- ment of the plastic. “Yes, it's true the plastic only degrades under certain unique flavors such as pomegranate, raspberry, blue- conditions," he informed her. "But that's still better than berry, and coconut. The company had great plans for a lot of other plastics." the future. In 10 years Smith's Sodas wanted to become a competitor to its larger rivals, Pepsi and Coca-Cola. The company sold sodas with lowe rivals and offered them in a variety of flavors. However, the product was only half the battle. The rest was up to the marketing department to promote the sodas as being then we are fine." Keisha approached her manager, Louis, to discuss the issue. Louis did not understand Keisha's concern. " don't see what the problem is, Keisha, other than the fact that this reporter is trying to cause trouble. As long as the plastic biodegrades under certain natural conditions, an "Yes, but Louis, our claims made it seem the bottles degrade fairly easily, when in reality people must com post them. Even then they only degrade under certain conditions. Isn't this a type of greenwashing?" superior to the competition. Recently, Keisha was called into her supervisor's office and assigned a new project. She would take the lead in a marketing initiative that promoted a new fea- ture meant to appeal to the eco-conscious consumer: biodegradable packaging. One of the company's sup- pliers came up with a soda bottle made with a new bio- degradable plastic manufactured with plant material Keisha was told the supplier struggled to develop this plastic for years and Smith's Sodas was staking much of its credibility on developing an image as an environmen- Louis frowned at the mention ofgreenwashing. “Kei sha, the term biodegradable is vague. We have a supplier, and it is not our responsibility to prove the packaging is biodegradable. We are not being deceitful, and it is up to the consumer to know how to dispose of the package so it degrades properly. We can't control what happens to the product after the consumer buys it. Many may sim ply toss it into the garbage." lly friendly organization Keisha immediately began learning about the plas- "What happens if the reporter publishes her find- tic and writing up press releases to send to local news ng ings?" Keisha asked. on in rs wo g on a ma Lo oked adamant ar when we s biodegradable. Besides, mo ng the produ s for the environment. She campaign nies have to rely on supplier claims. I don't fact that the should be com ed rather than n why we need to chan imply thrown in the trash to biodegrade properly. m a QUESTIONS EXERCISES e heard all of the hype concerning the biodegradable bo Are Smith's Sodas's marketi ims s your company is using. I Wa truthful? truthful? abilit t how biodegradable this 2. Dis r the ontacted scientists at the local univ degradability. They t conditions with different type of the ten t major extei ted the bottle under 10 differ marketing claims of soil. Only four out 3. Assume there is a news story questioning the sustain- sulted in the pla c degrading to any f Smith's Soda s packaging. How should Kei When Keisha hu stigate whether the ng up the phone , she decidedt This case 1S embland ms were ac niesExplanation / Answer
Answer: (1) No as clearly stated in the case study, the plastic bottles which the Smith’s Soda is using are not biodegradable in all the conditions. The company is marketing the product as fully sustainable and is not highlighting the conditions which apply to its sustainability claims. Hence Smith’s marketing claims are not accurate and are only partially or conditionally true.
(2) The justifications of the Louis are based on the business logic rather than the ethics. It is possible that the company may not face any legal consequences for the act which they are doing because the companies often market on the basis of the claim which suppliers make. But as Kesiha and Louis now know that the bottles are not bio degradable in all conditions hence it is their moral and ethical responsibility to highlight this or at least add a disclaimer about this fact. Therefore the claims by Louis that the company is not fully wrong in making the sustainability related claims and that it is not the company’s responsibility to prove the claims of bio degradability of the bottles are not right. Thus his arguments cannot be considered as justified.
(3) She should be honest and should tell the customers through press release that the bottles are degradable only in certain conditions and hence they should attempt to dispose of the bottles in those particular conditions only.
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